Jesuitical is a podcast from America Media for saints and sinners. Tune in every week for honest conversations about the Catholic Church and our world today—sometimes over drinks. Hosted by Ashley McKinless and Zac Davis.
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French Catholicism Reborn? What happened on Pope Leo’s visit to France (and why it matters for all of us)
Thursday, October 1, 2026 • Duration 45:19
This week on Jesuitical, Colleen Dulle joins hosts Zac Davis and Sebasian Gomes to discuss Pope Leo’s recent visit to France, including his messages on assisted dying, European identity and the role of the Catholic Church in a secular country. Colleen also reflects on her experience of traveling with the pope for the first time.
Sign up for Colleen’s newsletter, Vatican Notebook!
Chapters:
00:00 First time on the papal plane!
4:02 Why Pope Leo went to France
6:45 Catholic revival?
9:43 Secularity in France
14:02 Pro-life issues in France
17:57 Is Europe a "Christian" culture?
24:55 Pope meets abuse victims
34:08 Liturgy and division
Links:
Pope Leo’s trip to France won’t be a victory lap—and that’s a good thing.
Vatican Notebook: Pope Leo navigates tensions between secularism and Catholic history on France visit
‘More than a monument’: Pope Leo’s speech at the newly renovated Notre-Dame
Pope Leo draws 800,000 to Mass in the heart of Paris
Vatican Notebook: Pope Leo addresses French conversion boom, warns against complacency
Pope speaks out against French assisted-dying and abortion laws in Lourdes visit
Mother: Pope Leo’s blessing of special-needs daughter recognizes ‘segment of humanity often set aside’
Pope Leo meets with survivors of abuse in Lourdes
Pope Leo: Europe must return to path of dialogue, not military buildup
Pope Leo is not ‘in panic mode’ about an A.I. catastrophe, but ‘we can’t just sit back’ and do nothing
You can sign up for Colleen's 'Vatican Notebook' newsletter here: https://www.americamagazine.org/sign-up-for-vatican-notebook-email-newsletter
Follow Colleen on Instagram: @colleendulle
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Fulton Sheen: The First Celebrity Bishop
Thursday, September 24, 2026 • Duration 47:54
This week on the “Jesuitical” podcast, Ashley McKinless and Zac Davis speak with Rachel Lu about the beatification of Fulton Sheen, the American archbishop who was famous for his media evangelism in the mid-20th century. Rachel is a senior editor at Law and Liberty and a regular contributor to the National Review and America Magazine. Together they discuss Sheen’s charisma, cultural influence, and his lesser known political philosophy which defended both the public role of religion and the separation of church and state.
Chapters:
Chapters:
00:00 Beatification of Fulton Sheen
01:23 When Fulton Sheen arrived on the scene
05:20 Sheen’s philosophical training
07:34 Fighting communism
11:22 What made Sheen’s TV show so popular?
13:51 What Sheen would think of America today?
26:09 The first celebrity bishop?
34:19 Introducing "Auguri!"
36:15 Faith sharing: Praying about using A.I.
Links from the show:
Fulton Sheen Bet on America. Some Catholics Want to Call It Off.
Pope Leo calls Archbishop Fulton Sheen ‘a light of faith’ who touched millions with the Gospel
Archbishop Fulton Sheen to be beatified Sept. 24 in St. Louis
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U.S. Bishops are finding their voice. What will they say about A.I.?
Thursday, September 17, 2026 • Duration 41:37
On this week’s episode of “Jesuitical,” Zac Davis and Sebastian Gomes speak with America’s President and Editor in Chief, Sam Sawyer, S.J. to discuss the impact that U.S. bishops are having on politics, AI, and more. Bishops are speaking out against war, mass deportations, the death penalty and racism, and their voices are breaking through. In this episode, Zac, Sebastian and Sam talk about why they’re having a moment, the influence of Pope Leo, and the opportunities for shaping the future of A.I.
Chapters:
00:00 Growing influence of Bishops on US politics
04:35 Opposing mass deportation
10:30 Engaging with the Trump Administration
14:05 Bishops are finding new ways to talk about issues
18:00 The influence of Pope Leo
22:43 Where Bishops stand on A.I.
29:54 How U.S. Bishops can implement Magnifica humanitas
32:55 Opportunities around A.I.
Links:
The U.S. bishops are speaking out forcefully on politics—and finally being heard
Top US bishop writes letter to Trump urging end to mass deportations of Haitians
Why are there so few African American bishops? ‘The short answer is racism’ says Bishop Boxie
Bishop Olson on racism
US bishops form new task force over AI concerns, meet with tech leaders
Pope Francis to U.S. Catholic bishops: Oppose mass deportations
Analysis: The U.S. bishops showed their unity on behalf of immigrants—and may have repaired their relationship to Rome
Artificial Intelligence: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
USCCB Positions on Artificial Intelligence
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SSPX Excommunicated: History, Pope Leo and why it all goes back to Vatican II
Thursday, September 10, 2026 • Duration 59:08
Schisms don’t happen often in the Catholic Church. Which makes Pope Leo’s recent excommunication of the Society of Saint Pius X big news. This week on Jesuitical, hosts Zac and Ashley speak to Shaun Blanchard, Senior Lecturer in Theology at the University of Notre Dame Australia, about the history of the SSPX, their illicit decision to ordain new bishops, and what their excommunication means for more traditional groups within the Catholic Church.
Chapters:
00:00 Why we're talking about the SSPX
01:42 Why the SSPX was excommunicated
04:55 Why Archbishop Lefebvre rejected Vatican II
9:38 Lefebvre's problem with religious liberty
14:20 Was this a debate over liturgy?
18:00 Ordaining bishops crosses a line
21:33 How 17th c. Jansenism illuminates the crisis
28:45 Restricting the traditional Latin Mass
35:05 How excommunication works
38:52 Implications for the traditional Latin Mass
47:16 There's no going back on Vatican II
49:48 Learning to appreciate Vatican II
Links:
Vatican declares excommunicated SSPX bishops, warns priests and lay faithful of schism
Analysis: SSPX excommunications show what Pope Leo means by church ‘unity’
After SSPX excommunications, traditionalist Catholics face a difficult choice
5 years after Pope Francis’ Latin Mass restrictions, traditionalist Catholics reflect on ‘Traditionis Custodes’
After SSPX schism, some Catholics urge greater access to the older Latin Mass
Latin Mass, schism and cardinals in the media: The liturgy wars are back (and never really left)
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Pope Leo and Trump aren’t the first feuding leaders: a history of papal power clashes
Thursday, June 25, 2026 • Duration 01:14:15
When President Trump took to Truth Social earlier this year and attacked Pope Leo for being “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” most Catholics were understandably shocked. But a clash between a secular leader and the bishop of Rome is hardly without precedent. This week on “Jesuitical,” hosts Zac Davis and Ashley McKinless talk with Miles Pattendens, an expert on popes and papal conclaves, about the long and quirky history of feuds between popes and politicians.
In Signs of the Times, Zac and Ashley discuss the Vatican rejection of a request from the German bishops to allow lay people to preach the homily at Mass. Plus, a look ahead at Pope Leo’s summer plans.
And in As One Friends Speak to Another, America Media’s O’Hare fellows—Brigid McCabe, Ed Desciak and Will Gualitiere—share some spiritual insights from a year working at the intersection of the church and the world.
Jesuitical listener survey
00:00 Context
2:47 Vatican says "no" to women preaching
12:07 Pope Leo's summer schedule
16:05 History of Catholic authority
19:46 The investiture controversy
26:03 Pastoral concern or power grabs?
34:27 Henry VIII vs. Popes
39:20 How the church lost power
43:10 Moral authority on the global stage
52:00 Donald Trump's attacks on Pope Leo
1:00:10 Fill out our listener survey! https://forms.gle/yggZcBKeXYKbWYpM7
1:01:12 Faith sharing with our Fellows!
Learn about America Magazine's Joseph A. O’Hare, S.J., Postgraduate Media Fellowship: https://www.americamagazine.org/ohare-fellows
Jesuitical listener survey: https://forms.gle/yggZcBKeXYKbWYpM7
Links:
Vatican to German bishops: No lay people preaching homilies at Mass
Extraordinary consistory signals Pope Leo’s push to work with cardinals on global challenges
Pope Leo speaks out on SSPX ordinations and U.S.-Iran deal
Pope Leo to accept Liberty Medal and address Americans on July 3
Electing the Pope in Early Modern Italy, 1450-1700
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What the Lost Sheep parable says about individuality, tribalism and communion
Thursday, June 18, 2026 • Duration 01:12:41
This week on “Jesuitical,” Zac and Ashley sit down with Luke Burgis, the director of the Cluny Institute at The Catholic University of America and the author of The One and the Ninety-Nine: Forging Identity in the Age of Social Contagion. They discuss why we join and leave tribes, how to form a “solid” self and what healthy group identity looks like.
In Signs of the Times, Zac and Ashley discuss Vice President JD Vance’s new memoir on converting to Catholicism, the consecration of the United States to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and new statutes for the Vatican’s commission for the protection of minors. Plus, Pope Leo wraps up his successful trip to Spain on the Canary Islands—but has some trouble getting off them.
And in As One Friend Speaks to Another, Zac shares what he’s thinking about going into his very first Father’s Day.
0:00 Intro
3:30 J.D. Vance’s new book “Communion”
9:36 U.S. bishops meet for annual meeting in Orlando
19:44 Pope Leo finishes Spain trip
21:39 Papal plane trouble
24:25 Interview with Luke Burgis
25:52 The parable of the lost sheep
31:16 The age of social contagion
33:56 What Luke learned in seminary
38:05 Is your community good for you?
42:27 People respond to aesthetics
46:30 The importance of distance
48:46 The Catholic Church is unique as a community
57:20 What is the Cluny Institute?
1:02:25 What about AI?
1:05:24 Canonization
1:08:07 As One Friend Speaks to Another
Links:
The One and the Ninety-Nine: Forging Identity in the Age of Social Contagion
Learn more about the Cluny Institute
JD Vance writes about his journey to Catholicism in his new book, ‘Communion’
Consecration 101: What the bishops’ upcoming consecration of the US to the Sacred Heart means
Pope Leo XIV approves new statutes for child protection commission
Pope Leo ends visit to Spain with a call to repent
What’s on tap?
Sancerre
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What is it like to teach a future Pope?
Thursday, June 11, 2026 • Duration 55:58
This week on “Jesuitical”, Ashley McKinless and Zac Davis talk to Dianne Bergant, C.S.A., who taught Scripture at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago for 44 years. She also served as America’s Word columnist from 2002 to 2005. During her time at CTU, Sr. Dianne had one very famous student, Robert Prevost—the future Pope Leo XIV. With Sr. Dianne, Zac and Ashley discuss what it’s like to be the teacher of a future pope and how approaches to teaching Scripture have evolved over time.
During Signs of the Times, Ashley and Zac unpack Pope Leo’s trip to Spain and a new Sagrada Familia Lego Set, and they talk sports with Catholic perspectives on the World Cup and NBA Finals—featuring some words from O’Hare Fellow Ed Desciak.
In “As One Friend Speaks to Another,” Ashley shares an exciting announcement.
Links from the show:
Pope Leo defends the unborn and migrants in historic speech to Spanish parliament
More than one million attend Pope Leo’s Mass and procession in the heart of Madrid
Pope Leo meets Bad Bunny in Madrid
In Spain, Pope Leo denounces polarization and hails commitment to multilateralism
Lego announces new set designed after Spain’s Sagrada Família basilica
Oligarchs can’t ruin the World Cup
Celebrating faith and FIFA: Italian-American community welcomes soccer legends
Your Catholic Guide to the 2026 N.B.A. Finals: Spurs Sisters vs. Villanova Knicks
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The Archdiocese of New York's Good News Strategy
Thursday, June 4, 2026 • Duration 53:26
This week on “Jesuitical,” Zac and Ashley speak with Mary Kate Polanin, the executive editor of The Good Newsroom, the digital news outlet of the Archdiocese of New York. They discuss the important and changing role of diocesan communications, Catholics in the digital space and New York’s new archbishop.
In Signs of the Times, Zac and Ashley discuss Pope Leo’s surprising and historic choice to lead the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication and dig into the advice “Magnifica Humanitas” offers to each of us when it comes to navigating our relationship with A.I. Plus: Pope Leo heads to Spain on Saturday—and Bad Bunny is hoping they cross paths.
Links from the show:
Pope Leo appoints president of EWTN News as head of Vatican communications
America’s coverage of “Magnifica Humanitas”
Bad Bunny wants to meet Pope Leo XIV. In Madrid, a crossover event is in the works.
The Good Newsroom
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Should the church encourage Catholic influencers?
Tuesday, June 2, 2026 • Duration 47:00
On this bonus episode of “Jesuitical,” Ashley and Zac speak with two digital evangelization experts who helped create the Vatican’s study group report on the digital environment as part of the Synod on Synodality. Kim Daniels directs the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University, and José Manuel de Urquidi runs the Evangelization Lab. Both were synod delegates, along with then-Cardinal Robert Prevost (the future Pope Leo XIV), at the global sessions of the synod in Rome in 2023 and 2024.
They discuss:
00:00 What are the Synod Study Groups?
7:10 How Pope Leo has shaped synodality
15:16 How influencers challenge church jurisdiction
28:30 Accompanying digital evangelizers
33:40 Converting to real communities
Links:
Study Group 3’s final report on the Digital Environment
The Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life
Evangelization Lab
Coverage of Pope Leo’s encyclical “Magnifica Humanitas”
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Pope Leo's A.I. encyclical: Top takeaways from “Magnifica Humanitas”
Thursday, May 28, 2026 • Duration 41:58
This week on Jesuitical: A feed drop of this week's special “Inside the Vatican” roundtable, a discussion of “Magnifica Humanitas,” Pope Leo’s groundbreaking first encyclical on protecting the human person in the age of artificial intelligence. Host Colleen Dulle sits down with her co-host and senior Vatican correspondent, Gerard O’Connell, as well as America’s president and editor in chief, Sam Sawyer, S.J.
They discuss the document’s key takeaways, how it is being received in Silicon Valley, Pope Leo’s challenge for every Catholic in the A.I. age and much more.
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:11 Pope Leo present for the launch of his own encyclical
4:21 How the encyclical is being received by the tech community
8:43 Magnifica Humanitas on the growth of Catholic social teaching
13:16 Acknowledging the Church’s role in slavery
15:53 Exploring Pope Leo’s ecclesiology
22:30 Leo’s concrete recommendations for A.I.
32:30 How lay people can deal with A.I.
37:40 Outro
Links:
Read “Magnifica Humanitas”
Pope Leo’s first encyclical tackles A.I., power and human dignity
Pope Leo XIV makes historic apology for the Catholic Church’s role in legitimizing slavery
Why Pope Leo’s new encyclical quotes Gandalf: Literary images of hope and faith in ‘Magnifica Humanitas’
A capitalist (priest) reads ‘Magnifica Humanitas’
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